Water Sources Are Being Depleted

Many people in economically developed countries tend to think of fresh water as endless. However, this is not reality: less than 3% of the Earth’s water is fresh water.

Supplies are constantly being depleted, even in the United States. Agriculture and industry have put increasing demands on the world’s rivers and estuaries. Agriculture alone accounts for 70% of the world’s fresh water use. In a recent article series published by National Geographic, eight of the world’s major rivers were experiencing major depletion. The Colorado River in the US no longer reaches the ocean and barely supplies Mexico with fresh water. The Indus River in the the Middle East is facing a similar problem. The water is being depleted by Pakistan’s agricultural needs before it reaches the Port of Karachi.

Flowing Water on the River
Photo by Larisa Koshkina

Similar occurrences are also true for: Amu Darya and Syr Darya in Asia, the Rio Grande in the US, the Yellow River in China, the Teesta River in India and the Murray River in Australia. Many of these rivers are the sole water source for millions of people living in these countries. These extreme reductions in water level are not due only to human consumption, but also human waste. Poorly constructed irrigation systems account for tremendous loss in most cases. Pollution from both agriculture and industry are also to blame.

Rivers are not the only fresh water source being depleted. Recently, satellite evidence of severe groundwater depletion was detected in the Tigris and Euphrates River basins. This loss of water totals to a staggering 144 cubic kilometers, most of which (roughly 60%) can be attributed to the pumping of groundwater from underground reservoirs. A study conducted in the Netherlands found that nearly half of the world’s water basins were depleting more than 40% of their renewable supplies. Losses to aquifers and groundwater have devastating consequences, as these sources take a long time to replenish.

We use water for cooking, growing and preparing food; in sustaining industry, to maintain our health, and for recreational purposes. Our daily existence relies on the availability of water. Yet as the global population rises and the consumption of water increases, we find ourselves depleting all of our water sources. It is estimated that by 2025 1.8 billion people around the world will live in extreme water scarcity.

The average American uses an average of 2,000 gallons of water each day. Only 5% of this amount is for drinking and hygiene. The remaining amount is what is used for cooking, energy resources, and to produce the products we purchase.There are major milestones to reach in water conservation, such as a focus on new energy--power that does not heavily rely on hydropower-- and modifying our individual water usage habits. Each of us, in our daily lives, can adopt practices that will stop waste and contribute to conserving our water supply.

The Average American uses an average of 2,000 gallons of water each day!